A dietary supplement, also known as food supplement or nutritional supplement, is a preparation intended to supplement the diet and provide nutrients, such as vitamins, minerals, fiber, fatty acids, or amino acids, that may be missing or may not be consumed in sufficient quantities in a person's diet. In the United States, over $20 billion worth of dietary supplements are sold every year; energy drinks and sports nutrition supplements contribute an additional $10 billion to the US economy every year.
In the US, the Food and Drug Administration generally regulates dietary supplements as foods and not as drugs. Because they are not regulated as drugs, people often take dietary supplements without regard for proper dosing. However, even though they are not regulated as drugs, many if not all dietary supplements have a preferred dosing range and such supplements are generally more effective and have fewer unintended side effects if they are dosed in their preferred dosage range. Accordingly, there exists a need in the art for convenient and easy to use monitoring systems and associated supplements to aid with proper dosing for dietary supplements.